Jeremy Hunt's pudding crusade: 'Going out is no longer a treat.'

Jeremy Hunt has already made an enemy of junior doctors. Could restaurant bosses be next on his hit list?

The health secretary has warned restaurants they face being publicly named and shamed if they do not “step up” and reduce the amount of sugar in their food.

He argued restaurants, pubs, takeaways, fast food retailers and cafes should reduce sugar content or cut portion sizes of desserts, cakes and croissants. Calorie-reduction targets for savoury foods will also be set.

According to The Times, Hunt warned restaurant bosses at a meeting that they “want to be on the right side of this debate” and that the Government would “shine a light”.

The newspaper reports that a website measuring their progress against a voluntary target to cut sugar by 20% within five years is one of the options being considered.

“Going out to eat is no longer a treat,” said Hunt.

“It’s a regular habit for many families and is contributing significantly to the extra calories and sugar that we all consume on a daily basis...

“We can’t ignore the changing habits of consumers. This means we expect the whole of the out-of-home sector – coffee shops, pubs and family restaurants, quick service restaurants, takeaways, cafés, contract caterers and mass catering suppliers – to step up and deliver on sugar reduction.”

Hunt reportedly told the meeting that a quarter of families took children to fast food joints each week, with Brits consuming more than a fifth of their sugar intake outside the home.